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Thursday, January 17, 2013

Heresies of the Dark Country

The Church of Law demands complete submission from its adherence and thus it is both interested in orthopraxis and orthodoxy; however, it is difficult in a world where civilization inhabits such a small sliver of reality as it does in the World of Nightwick to maintain a consistent ideology. This is especially true in border areas such as the Dark Country, where the grip of Law is weak. As such, a number of competing views of the God of Law have developed. An incomplete list is provided below.

Dualists believe the God of Law is both a cube and a sphere simultaneously. For some reason that mainstream Church scholars can't understand, this has led them to only eat nuts and to avoid children at all costs. Some believe that humans may be reincarnated, but they only get this second chance to Submit. If they fail this second time, they are cast into the Pit.

Limners believe the God of Law is a line of inflexible width. They often identify other members by making secret linear signs in the air or in the sand. They are surprisingly common among the ranks of the lower clergy, and these churchmen believe that the Church has been too lenient in persecuting pagans.

Escapists believe that the World is in fact the dream of beings from an even more miserable reality. They are a sad lot.

Xagygians believe that there are not three alignments but nine, and they emphasize morality and social justice to a degree that sickens mainstream Church officials. They also divide demons and devils into separate entities and have the gall to declare that devils are Lawful!Impositionists believe that the God of Law did not make reality, rather it already existed as the chaotic mass in which the demons and Old Gods lived. They claim that the God of Law looked upon this horrifying, chaotic swirl and imposed Order on it, creating the World as we know it.Solarists believe the God of Law is a glowing yellow circle that flies across the firmament every day bringing warmth and light to the benighted World. For evidence of this, they simply point to the Sun. Many scholars believe this position is heavily influenced by the paganism espoused by the dreaded outlaw Yim Yimsley, which would explain its prevalence in the poorer communities of the Dark Country.The Devoured are actually a chaotic mix of heretics that all have one trait in common: they believe that one or more of the monsters that inhabit the World of Nightwick can actually be saved and join the God of Law on the Mountain of Heaven. They supposedly enter dark forests and dank caves looking for converts, and their name refers to their presumed fate.Note that all of the above names are not words which the heretics would use to identify themselves. They almost always claim to be members of the Church of Law and have their own terms for the Church, including Devil Worshipers, False Prophets, and assholes.